The Hindu : Kerala / Kochi News : Import will not hit traditional fishermen, says Elangovan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jan 06, 2006

Kerala

Kerala - Kochi

Import will not hit traditional fishermen, says Elangovan

Staff Reporter

Dominic Presentation tells seafood exporters not to forget fishermen

KOCHI: Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry E.V.K.S. Elangovan said on Thursday that the proposal to import fish as raw material for the seafood processing industry from Thailand would not be allowed to hit the domestic market or the interest of the traditional local market.

The Minister, delivering the inaugural address at a function organised here to give away seafood export awards instituted by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), said that for India to emerge as seafood processing hub, raw material would have to be imported.

Under no circumstances such imported raw material would be allowed to enter the domestic market or raise difficulties for the local fishermen in selling their catch, said the Minister.

The Minister, reacting to a comment by Fisheries Minister Dominic Presentation, said that the Union Government would keep the interest of fishermen in mind when policy decisions were taken.

He was referring to Mr. Presentation saying that the State Government had conveyed its opposition to a move for duty-free import of fish for the seafood processing industry.

Mr. Elangovan said that after reaching the $1-billion mark, seafood exports had reached a phase of stagnation. "This was mainly due to shortage of raw material added with some trade barriers imposed by major buying countries such as the European Union," said the Minister. He said that the Union Government considered the seafood industry as having tremendous potential and had identified it as a thrust area. In order to tap the unexploited resources of the country, particularly tuna, special focus was on exploiting tuna resources. With this in mind, the Union Government had reduced duty on import of monofilament long-line system for tuna fishing.

"Expansion of aquaculture, focussing on production of ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook fish products, assistance for market access and market development are some of the key measures being undertaken by the Union Government," he added.

Earlier, Mr. Presentation who delivered the presidential address, said that seafood exporters had to take into consideration the plight of the traditional fishermen who provided the raw material for the industry. He referred to the revival of the fishermen's welfare fund and the need to take into consideration effects of tsunami and the attack by puffer fish that destroyed nets worth several crores of rupees.

G. Mohankumar, Chairman, MPEDA, welcomed the gathering. K.V. Thomas, MLA, K.T. Chacko, Director-General of Foreign Trade, Ram Mohan Mishra, Director, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and Abraham Tharakan, president, Seafood Exporters' Association of India, were among those who spoke at the function.

The Union Minister later gave away the awards.

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